Relationship renewal License

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I was watching the TV show, “Chelsea lately” with the guest Jenny McCarthy. During one of the segments, they were talking about relationships. Jenny McCarthy said something to the affect that she believes couples should get “Relationship renewal licenses”, which, after say a five year period, would be up for renewal or not.

So, if I get this idea correctly, after five years of marriage a couple can reassess their marriage and decide, either one of them or both, to let the relationship expire. I’m assuming the premise being that many couples would like to leave a marriage, but because of the lifetime commitment they vowed to and possible legal ramifications if they split, won’t. Also, the divorce rate in the USA being high would lend some credence to Jenny’s idea. The divorce rate in the US has lowered recently, but so has the amount of couples getting married.

If this “Relationship renewal license” were given serious thought, would it be an accepted concept in the American population? There would be many details to work out and even more considerations to deal with. Although laws on divorce vary from state to state, most have to deal with issues such as visitation for children, alimony or “Maintenance fees” as they are sometimes called, property division and so many others. How would these issues be defined if a renewal license weren’t continued?

I don’t know the answers to this technically and somewhat revolutionary idea, but I wonder how many of us would think it was worth a try? Would woman like the idea more than men, or visa versa? Do you think it would improve the sustaining of marriage through the years? Or maybe this idea can never be a reality? If so, why not?